A Father's Legacy
by cooldeadpool
Summary: Title may change. Riolu/Lucario wakes up with no memory of who he is. Read as he meets new friends, becomes stronger and uncovers the secrets of himself, his father's and the world of Pokemon. Rated T for Language. Sorry I suck at summaries. Semi Mystery dungeon-ish but not actually.
1. New Beginnings

A/N

_Okay so I'll be breaking a bit of Poke rules around here and changing them into my own ...just a little bit. The following are:_

_One, Pokemons here have first names followed by their last as the name of their kind. Sort of like clans._

_Two, Pokemons have three species here which are: Humanoid, Entity and Bestial._

_Three, Pokemons can breed with different kinds of pokemon. The egg species here like amorphorous or Human-like etc. will not be abandoned and it will not limit on who can breed with other pokemon but don't worry I won't have it constantly being said or reminded in the story. If you like seeing a Machoke "breeding" a Delcatty well….. well okay that's creepy but rest assured I won't add that here. And another thing regarding the breeding area, a pokemon's kind will not be based on the kind of the mother pokemon. It will be based depending on what kind both parents are for example: Shuppet M and Misdreavus F = either Misdreavus or Shuppet with random gender._

_Four, TMs and attacks that classify as Special, Status and Physical here are sometimes called Spells, Skills, and Techniques respectively. Just so you won't get confused._

_Are we clear? I will add up more new rules so just enjoy (I hope)_

_Comments and suggestions are appreciated and please be nice._

_I don't own Pokemon. They belong to Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures Inc._

* * *

A Father's Legacy

XXXXX

Chapter 1:

New Beginnings

_He couldn't move his body. It felt like he was paralyzed as he listened to the voices he was hearing. Whose voices was he hearing? Everything felt wrong and it was so hot. It felt like he was burning along with the voices. He tried to listen to anyone whose voice he would recognize but his brain was so confused. If only he could move his body then he might know what's happening. But then suddenly he heard it, that calming voice he always hears; his fathers' voice._

"_I will always love you…. Live…. For me…"_

_He couldn't move. Somewhere in his fathers' voice he sensed some sadness and despair like it's the last time he'll hear him. Then the heat was slowly fading away and instead in came something cold. It feels like like it was sucking him to a void. Maybe to somewhere no one will hurt him or his family. Maybe he is going to the place where his mom went. Maybe he IS dying. With sleep forthcoming, his mind was slowly succumbing to the cold._

"_Dad….."_

The sun shone through the trees casting a ray of light over Riolu's face. He slowly opened his eyes to see the morning sun. He gave grunt as he woke up not remembering what happened to him.

His eyes shot open as he realized he couldn't remember a single thing, not even his name. Who was he? Where was he anyway? He looked around and found himself in a forest. Despite his current situation, the place somehow put him at ease. At least he didn't wake up to some terrifying place. Looking around his surroundings furthermore, he spotted a river near him. Deciding he needed a quick drink, he stood up and walked near the river.

The stream was crystal clear telling him it was clean enough for drinking. He bent over to cup some water when he saw his paws. Since he couldn't remember his last name, he didn't know what kind pokemon he was until now. His thirst sated, he looked at his reflection from the river. He realized he was a Riolu. His right ear was chipped off like it was bitten or a part of it was cut off. His ear still stung which meant the wound was just recent.

'_So I'm a Riolu…. At least I know what I am.'_

He spent the time looking at his reflection when his mind started to wander. '_Was that just a dream or… a memory?',_ he thought as he tried to remember his dream in which he knew he heard a voice. Was it his father's? He remembered muttering 'Dad' so that could be the one whom the voice belonged to. There was familiarity yet there also wasn't. He racked his brain to remember what his father's voice sounded like but no matter how hard he tries it was all blank. Riolu knows his father should already be a Lucario yet he can't remember his father's name. A thought came to him as he tried to recall.

'_Is he looking for me?'_

The words kept repeating inside Riolu's head as he looked at his reflection when he noticed something in his peripheral.

"HEY LOOK OUT!"

WHACK! The piece of wood hit Riolu's head before he had the chance to react to it and then everything started to spin as he fell on his back. He heard voices like they were arguing but he couldn't tell as his consciousness was slowly slipping away.

'_Aww not again…'_ he thought as he started to blackout.

"Shit! Are you okay?" the Machop asked to the knocked out Riolu.

"Chopper, you idiot! Of course he's not okay! He's out cold!" the Shuppet yelled.

"Jeez Polton, calm down. If you didn't phase through the wood I threw then he wouldn't have been hit." Chopper argued.

"That's the point, you idiot! If I didn't _phase_ then I would have been hit!" Polton countered.

"Well… at least he's not dead," Chopper answered as he looked down at Riolu. "He's not dead, is he?" he asked as panic slowly crept over his face.

"No I don't think so," Polton sighed. "At any case let's bring him to Doc Chansey. He'll know what to do," He suggested. "Quick, carry him, it's your fault he's this way anyway."

"What? Can't you just do your shadow portal transportation thingie?" Chopper complained.

"No I can't," Polton responded. "Didn't I tell you that already? I can't transport someone who's out cold or sleeping, otherwise they'd end up having nightmares or worse they could end up dead." There was a moment of silence as he waited for Chopper to move and pick up Riolu.

"Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine…..," Chopper conceded with a heavy sigh.

"Was that REALLY necessary because a simple '_fine Polton I'll do it'_ would have done it." Polton implied. Chopper stood up grumbling as he picked up Riolu bridal style.

"Lead the way o' Smart one," Chopper mockingly said in which Polton could only sigh.

The trip back to town was rather quiet with the occasional grumbling of Chopper which only made Polton to roll his eyes at him. Polton glanced at the pokemon they were bringing to the doctor and he realized this is the first time he saw a Riolu, which was an extremely rare kind of pokemon. _'I wonder where he came from,'_ Polton thought. Then the silence was broken when Chopper began to speak.

"You know, Doc's gonna think we did this to him," Chopper commented.

"Well technically _you_ did that to him but that doesn't matter, we need to get him treated," Polton pointed out.

"Poor guy… part of his right ear was chipped off," Chopper added as they entered the town. They sneaked their way past the crowd of civilians as they got near the doctor's building with a sign at the front saying "Chansey's Care".

"Hey Doctor! We need some help here," Polton shouted as he bumped his horn a few times at the door of the building. A few moments later the door opened and a Chansey wearing a lab coat greeted them. Chansey's smile faded when he saw the two faces.

"Oh… you two," Chansey grumbled. "What trouble did you two- OH MY! What happened to this one?" he exclaimed. "Hurry him inside so I can tend to him properly." He advised as he went to another room.

The two brought Riolu inside and gently laid him down on a small bed made of haystack. Then Dr. Chansey came back with a first aid kit and an Audino on his trail. He began tending to Riolu with his assistant but stopped and gave the two a pointed look. "I will see you in the waiting area," he said which meant he would later want an explanation after he's done.

"Yes Doctor.." the two simultaneously grumbled and headed for the waiting area.

* * *

Riolu woke up to the sound of voices as he slowly opened his eyes. The sunlight from the window was so bright that he had to close his eyes for a minute to let it adjust. He realized that he was all alone and the voices were coming from the hall outside the room. He sat up but later regretted it as a headache came over him. Rubbing his temples to try to ease the pain, he heard someone enter the room. Dr. Chansey went near Riolu and gave him an ice pack.

"Here, place this over your head for a little while," he instructed Riolu.

"How is he?" Chopper asked with worry.

"He's going to be fine… Just a little headache," Chansey assured which made Chopper and Polton sigh in relief.

Riolu sighed as the ice pack alleviated his headache. "What happened?" he asked looking to the three pokemon in the room.

"I believe these two will do the explaining," Dr. Chansey glancing at the two.

"Yeah sorry about that.." Chopper apologized. "We were training and uh… uhh I guess you got caught up in it," he said scratching the back of his head.

"He threw a piece of wood at me.. Of course any pokemon's reaction was to dodge it… and .. We didn't see you there, " Polton clarified. "We're really sorry about that," he apologized.

"No it's uhh….. it's okay," Riolu clarified. "You didn't know."

The two sighed in relief as they watch the doctor check up on Riolu. "It's a rare sight that we see a Riolu here in the village," Dr. Chansey said. "What's your name little one?" he asked.

"I … I can't remember…" Riolu muttered as he turned his eyes on the floor. This made Polton and Chopper panic from guilt.

"Oh it seems we have more than just a headache," Dr. Chansey added, glaring at the two.

"No no it's not their fault. I already lost my memory before I got hit in the head," Riolu clarified making the two sigh again in relief.

"That is strange… if as you say that you already lost your memory long before the concussion, then normally that would have already been enough for you to regain them again," Dr. Chansey explained. This also came strange to Riolu. Shouldn't he have regained his memory now? A hit in the head is what it usually takes to regain lost memories.

"Well maybe we should try another one," Chopper joked. Chansey and Polton stared blankly at him, "I mean…. that was just a joke … " he muttered as he clammed up a bit.

"Well at any case, you should probably stay with us," Polton offered. "I doubt you'd have a place to stay, besides …it's the least we could do." he added.

"I hate to say it but it does make sense, I can't have someone living here in the clinic unless you're an Audino or another Chansey like me and I doubt someone in town would willingly take in a stranger to live in their home for a while." Dr. Chansey said, "It is a good option for now considering your situation. The decision is up to you, little one." He added as he smiled at Riolu, "But if you do decide to stay with them… I would advice that you leave him out of your _shenanigans." _He said as he gave the two a knowing look.

"Aw Doc you wound us." Chopper said innocently.

"Well, welcome to the club." Polton smiled at Riolu, "Oh yeah. My name's Polton Shuppet and he is-"

"CHOPEEEEEEEEER THE MACHOOOOOOP! At your service!" Chopper shouted enthusiastically as he flexed his arms to show off his muscles. This only made Polton sigh and roll his eyes although it made Riolu laugh. It seems Chopper is the funny one and Polton is the smart one from what Riolu observed. _'What an odd pairing.'_ he smiled at the thought.

"I'd introduce myself but I can't remember my name," Riolu smiled, "I guess you can just call me Riolu." He added. "Are you sure it's okay with you guys? Me staying in your home?" he asked as he stood up setting the ice pack down to the haystack bed.

"Why the hell not? Think of it as a way of us apologizing." Chopper assured.

"Once again, welcome to the club, Riolu." Polton said, "We'll give you a tour around town before we go to our place. You can even stay there when you've regained your memories." He assured with a smile.

"These two may be troublemakers but they're good pokemon. You can trust them." Dr. Chansey said as they got out of the room.

"Aww shucks Doc. You're making me cry." Chopper sobbed.

Dr. Chansey sighed as he rolled his eyes, "Just don't go with their shenanigans, we already have two troublemakers we don't need one more. Now off you go, I've got a busy day ahead of me." He said as he dismissed them. "With wars these days… it's hard to find some nice rest and relaxation." he muttered as he showed them out of the clinic.

That got Riolu thinking. _'War? There's a war… no.. he said wars… that means there's a lot going on.'_ He thought deeply.

"You okay? You spaced out for a moment… Did you remember something?" Polton asked with concern.

"No… just thinking…." Riolu trailed off but Polton didn't believe him though he didn't push it. "Dr. Chansey mentioned… wars. Is there one happening right now?" Riolu asked looking at the two. They were silent for a moment but Chopper broke it.

"Well not here but … there is.." Chopper said looking at Polton.

"_Are_ … There are wars happening in different places. We're lucky this village is not affected. Well mostly… Other pokemon who go out of the village become casualties. Some don't even make it back." Polton said with a sad look in his eyes, "But that's if you go near warzones. As far as I can tell, warzones are a few more miles from here so we're safe. Let's have a look around so you can familiarize yourself with our town." He said ending their conversation.

Riolu can tell there's something more to it but he's gonna leave it at that. After all they were nice enough to let him live with them, he's not going to pry until they decide to tell him their secrets. Maybe this is what kept the two together. _'Something must have happened to them in the past'_, Riolu thought sadly.

The trip around town went by easily. Riolu learned that the town is called Crescent Town because of a crescent shaped pond in the town's shrine. It seems the town has a local legend that a guardian once protected the place and kept it from harm. The people did seem like they needed that guardian now that wars are happening all over the world.

They went to the stores and Riolu looked at the items they sell. The town is teeming with shops and merchants from berry stands, accessory shops and other knick-knacks. There's even a meat shop owned by a Weavile which the owner refuses to tell them what kind of meat he sells and where it comes from.

Riolu can tell that the two are well known around town. It seems there are mixed reactions when it comes to them. Some sigh heavily when they see them, others wave and smile. He heard Polton saying that they were heading to another shop that sells potions and spell books. Chopper smirked along the way which only made Polton roll his eyes.

"I know why he wants to go there…" Chopper sang.

"To _buy_ the spell book I ordered." Polton said bluntly.

"_Nooo_. You're there to see _Wanda_," Chopper said, twinkling his eyes at Polton as he mentioned the name.

"I'm ignoring you." Polton said.

"Wanda?" Riolu laughed.

"Don't encourage him," Polton said to Riolu then sending a glare to Chopper in which he only received a smirk.

"Yeah, he's drools every time we see her," Chopper said with a giggle which made Riolu smile at the two.

"I do not! You just love making every small detail complicated, do you?" Polton snapped. "Now can we please stop talking about this?"

"…Spoilsport.." Chopper mumbled as they went near a small house with a stall outside the front yard. It appeared to be empty but there's a sign that clearly said it's open. Beside the sign appears to be a bell with a string attached with a small note that says: "ring me".

Polton telekinetically pulled the string and the bell rang. They waited for a moment when a smoke exploded at the back of the stall and danced around with glittering light as it slowly formed into a Mismagius.

"Who comes to my- Oh Polton and Chopper, my dearies. Welcome to my store. Welcome." The Mismagius said enthusiastically and looked at Riolu, "Oh and who might this be?"

"Good afternoon Miss Clara." The two said at the same time. "This is Riolu… well we don't know his first name. He lost his memories." Polton said as Riolu waved 'hi'.

"Oh you poor thing…. I wish I could give you a potion for that one." Clara said. "Is that why you are here?" She asked as she inspected Riolu, encircling him with fascination with an occasional murmur of: 'wow fascinating' and 'very rare indeed'. This only made Riolu uncomfortable and looked at the two for help.

"Uh no. We-" Polton was interrupted when the door of their house slammed open.

"Mom! There's a trapped soul in the toilet and it won't shut up!" A Mismagius said as she got near them.

"Just a minute, dear. Mom's busy." Clara smiled as her daughter rolled her eyes at her mom's vigor even at afternoon hours.

"Heeey Wanda." Chopper said with a smirk directed at Polton. "Come on, Polton don't be rude. Say hi to Wanda."

Polton let out a sigh and said, "Hi Wanda."

"Hey," Wanda said curtly sparing Riolu a glance but didn't ask for an introduction as she waited for her mom to finish.

"As I was saying… We came here to pick up the spell book I ordered." Polton cleared his throat, sending a glare at Chopper.

"Oh my, I almost forgot." Clara said as she started chanting in an unrecognizable language and a smoke exploded in front of them which then slowly dispersed leaving behind a book on the ground. "Voila! Here you are my dearies."

"Thanks miss Clara." Polton smiled as Chopper picked up the book.

"Oh anything for my great customer. Have a nice day." Clara said with a smile. "Oh and we hope you regain your memories soon, little Riolu. Don't we, Wanda?"

"Yeah sure whatever." Wanda said with no interest as she went back inside the house.

"Uh thanks Miss ..Clara" Riolu said, waving goodbye as the three went on their way. Their next destination is to go to the town's central plaza to check the arena where fights and battles are held as the two had said during the tour. Riolu recalled the two saying that an annual battle is held at the arena where the town's pokemon fight for a prize. They assured no one gets gravely hurt and it was just all for fun and the celebration of life. The arena fights only happen during a week-long annual festival. They explained it was why they were training in the first place before he got hit in the head. Riolu's thoughts were then interrupted when Chopper spoke.

"What's in this book anyway?" Chopper asked as he inspected the book and then opening it to check the pages. "Pft.. no pictures. How can you stand reading this thing?" he snorted.

Polton ignored his comment "It's a spell book. My secret weapon." Polton smirked as he snatched the book telekinetically. They waited for a moment of clarification but they didn't get any.

"Well what's the secret?" Chopper asked.

"Well it wouldn't be a secret anymore now would it? And didn't you just look inside the book?" Polton shot back. This made Chopper grumble and walk on without them.

"Fine be that way." Chopper murmured and Polton rolled his eyes.

Polton then opened a tiny portal made from shadows and dumped the book inside it, this however made Riolu curious.

"How'd you do that?" Riolu asked with curiosity.

"Do what?" questioned Polton. "You mean dealing with Chopper's idiocy?"

"No. That portal thing." Riolu said.

"Oooh that thing." Polton said in clarity. " Uh.. a family trait. A technique called Phantom Force."

"You can do that? I mean transport other objects." Riolu asked. "Where does it go anyway?" he asked.

"Yup. Lots of practice." Polton said proudly. " And it goes to our place, right above my desk." Riolu was about to ask how he knew that when they heard Chopper shouting at them with an impatient tone on his voice.

"Hey are you two _ladies_ done there?" Chopper shouted.

Polton rolled his eyes and Riolu laughed. They then went for the waiting Chopper and headed for the town's central plaza. The arena was not that huge but still big enough to be able to run around as it lay spread on the middle of the plaza with a circular shape. It has steel fences at the edge and right now stalls are being prepared near the arena. It seemed that the festival is getting near.

They explained that they have never participated in the arena which surprised Riolu. They said they didn't think they were strong enough. As they made their final viewing of the arena, the two decided that Riolu should see where he's going to live.

* * *

They headed east near the town's edge and spotted a nice looking house. As they got near, Riolu was a bit excited to see where he's going to stay for a while.

"Well here we are. Our humble abode." Chopper said as he bowed his upper body with an arm raised while the other was tucked behind him.

"Wow… This place is nice." Riolu said in awe as he checked out the inside of the house. It wasn't big but it wasn't small either. It was perfect. Cozy. It had a circular shape and there were no rooms but clearly the inside of the house had its own sections. He can tell that one side was Chopper's as it had various metal objects clearly used for weight lifting, a punching bag made of hay tied below the ceiling and a huge mirror hanged to the wall while Polton's had a desk with various books and scrolls as well as various magical artifacts and three large storage boxes in which he guessed contained food and other items they would need.

The only thing that each side shared similarly was the bed made of haystack.

"Wait for a bit, we'll prep up your side of the house." Polton said. "Chopper can you make him a bed?" he requested as he telekinetically lifted their things to make room for Riolu's side which was going to be at the center of the two sections. Though there were no things yet, he can already feel cozy.

"Yup already on it, baby!" Chopper sang as he picked up some extra hay and dropped it at the center of Riolu's side and shaped it like a nest. "There we go... All done."

"All that's left are the stuff that'll say 'this is my side'," Riolu smiled.

"Don't worry, about it we'll fill it up soon enough." Chopper assured.

"Well I guess this calls for a welcome home drink." Polton said looking at the two with a smile.

"Woooo I'll get the Berry Brews!" Chopper cheered. "It's time to drink 'til we get drunk!"

Riolu laughed at the energy of his new roommates. He guessed things turned out okay. At least he's got a place to stay and a couple of good friends. Maybe his memories can wait. He knows he can't force himself to remember; those memories will just come on its own. A cold brew would do him good followed by a good night's rest. Today's a new beginning and he thought, '_and so I'll welcome it.'_


	2. Memories of the Past

Chapter 2:

Memories of the Past

It was morning when Riolu woke up and he has the serious case of a hangover. He shielded his eyes from the sun coming from the window with his paw as he let himself get used to his headache.

"Ugh…Why is the sun so bright?" Riolu asked stupidly.

"Well, good morning to you," Riolu heard Polton say. He looked up from his bed and eyed him reading a book. It seemed he had been busy while they were asleep. There were scrolls and books floating with pens moving on their own, writing something on the pages of the books, others were lying on the ground clearly used. Riolu casted a glance at Chopper and noticed he was still out from this world.

"Chopper won't wake up 'til past noon. He's like that every time we drink." Polton said as he noticed Riolu casting a glance at Chopper.

"You didn't sleep, did you?" Riolu half guessed. Judging from the mess Polton's side has, it's clear he's been up all night reading and writing.

"Well… I didn't need it. I can stay awake mostly for five days straight. But not without consequences." Polton said without looking away from the book he's reading.

"Is that the book you got yesterday?" Riolu asked.

"Yeah" Polton said, "There are a couple of pain killers on your left side. You'll need it." He said when Riolu turned and noticed two pills next to a wooden cup filled with water.

"Thanks," Riolu said as he took the pain killers and drank the water. "ugh.." He waited for the pills to take effect while he listened to the sound of Chopper's snore and the sound of pages flipping every few seconds. He relaxed for a moment not thinking about anything when he thought about taking a shower and a cold one at that.

"Say… Where do you guys wash yourselves?" Riolu asked. "I think I'll wash myself for a bit."

"There's a shower stall outside at the back of the house." Polton said closing his book. "I'll show you where and how to use it." He smiled and motioned for Riolu to follow him through the front door.

When they made it to the back, Riolu can see a long metal tube coming out from the top shower stall that went on until it reached the edge of the river a few meters away from them. He can tell they designed this to make cleaning themselves easier instead of just jumping over at the lake.

"Here we are." Polton smiled. "There's a valve there that you can turn to let the water come out from the tube up here." he pointed at the opening of the tube above the stall. "If you don't want to shower though, you can just jump over at the river. Though I doubt the Goldeens would appreciate that. Chopper learned it the hard way." He laughed.

"Thanks," Riolu said as he laughed at the thought of Chopper getting horned by a Goldeen. "I really needed to clean up."

"Shout if you need something, oh and there's only soap there. No shampoo. You'll just have to use that" Polton instructed as he slowly became a shadow and phased through the ground. That somehow caused Riolu to shudder a bit. He wondered how it felt like to be walking through walls and objects or just having no hands at all for the record. He wouldn't last a day if his arms were suddenly taken away.

Riolu turned the valve and water cascaded down from the opening of the pipe. The rush of cold water made his blood flow with vigor, alleviating the effects of his hangover. He closed his eyes and gave a sigh as he let the water soak him completely; giving him the time to ponder on what he should do next. He probably should look for his family and find out what happened. The only problem is that he doesn't know where to start. He could ask for help to his two new friends but they were already nice enough to let him stay in their home.

'_Though they did hit me in the head,'_ he smiled.

But this is his problem not theirs. He doesn't need to trouble them with his current situation; he can't let them get caught up in this! If only he can remember something. Anything. He was getting desperate for a solution when a thought hit him. '_The dream… the dream I had!'_. It could be the answer he's looking for.

He tried decoding the dream he had. He remembered being stuck in somewhere dark and hot, as well as the voices he kept hearing. He realized that it wasn't only his father's voice that he heard, but also others as well.

'_Were those the voices of my kind?'_ he thought deeply.

He tried to remember what they were saying but he couldn't decipher it. The dream was dark and the voices sounded like they were speaking all at the same time so he couldn't understand a word that was said. There was also a hot sensation. He couldn't tell what reason is behind that feeling. It could be that he was in a fever. Maybe everyone thought he was as good as dead so they decided to leave him out in the wild. Saddened by the thought he tried to shake it off from his mind.

"That couldn't be it…" Riolu spoke to himself. "After all… he said that…" His eyes widened as he remembered something from the dream.

'_No… I'm sure I heard it right.'_ He remembered the words he heard. The words he's sure that came from his father.

"_**I will always love you…. Live… For me…"**_

'_That's it!_' he thought. _'He… loved me…I remember it.. So… So they couldn't have left me for dead…'_

He smiled at the thought. So having fever and being left to die was out of the list. His smile faded when he thought of something dreadful. '_Could something bad have happened?' _he frowned. The other thing he could only think of that was close to a feeling of something hot was…. Fire. He couldn't stop his thoughts from thinking the worst case scenario so he bit his right arm.

'…_..damn..'_ he let his arm drop as the blood dripped; mixing with the cascading water unto the ground. The slight pain was enough to distract him from his train of thought. He sighed heavily as he tried to lighten up his emotions. Maybe it was a bad idea to take a shower after all. He released a heavy sigh and started to lather up. Once he was finished, he turned the valve to stop the shower and got out of the stall.

Riolu shook himself to shake away the water from his fur. Once his body was just a bit damp, he let the sun do its' thing. He stayed standing for a few minutes before heading back to the house. He saw Polton with a floating newspaper near him while he was talking to a Breloom.

"Oh Riolu you're done." Polton smiled, "This is The Berry Master Poncho Breloom. We didn't get to see him yesterday because he was sick but he owns the berry stand we saw."

"Oh nice to meet you." Riolu greeted as he shook Poncho's red hand. "My name's Riolu… or well at least that's what you can call me." Poncho turned his head towards Polton with confusion in his face.

"He lost his memory." Polton explained.

"Oh dear Arceus… I wish I could offer some aid but I don't know how to bring back memories." Poncho said sympathetically.

"It's okay. I'm sure I'll get them back. "Riolu smiled.

"Oh Arceus I forgot.. Where was I…?" Poncho asked.

"You were saying something about berries not being delivered while I was picking up the newspaper."Polton answered. "Could you repeat it? You were pretty fast there, you kinda lost me." He requested.

"Oh right. You see… My berries are delivered here every month from across the country which is miles and miles away. The last deliverymen didn't get to _finish_ their job apparently… with a war happening… My suppliers of first class berries have been…. attacked and I have not heard word from ever since.. and it has been a month.. Two weeks and a month in fact.. I fear the worst has happened... Oh Arceus bless their poor souls…" Poncho prayed.

The two were quiet for a moment when Polton spoke, "So …. What? You want us to gather the berries from the other side of the country?!" he asked incredulously. Riolu was thinking deeply of what Poncho said. He remembered the mind session he had during his shower. He quickly put the thought away and focused on their conversation.

"Oh no nono. I would not want that. I do have the same favor to ask of you though and it's not that dangerous. I only request that you gather four baskets of berries from Crescent Forest; two baskets of Oran Berries and Pecha Berries to be exact." Poncho said. Riolu raised an eyebrow at the request.

Sensing Riolu's confusion Polton clarified to him the situation, "Oh we forgot to tell you about what we do. Chopper and I usually do requests and odd jobs from other pokemon. It's what got us that house." He said looking back at the house. "We're kind of the jack of all trades here which though sometimes gets us in trouble." He clarified. "Don't worry you don't have to do this. It's our job anyways" He assured Riolu.

"It's okay. It's the least I could do for inviting me to live with you guys." Riolu smiled. "Besides. I'll be doing something to keep me busy for a while."

"Great." Polton smiled at Riolu. "All right we'll take your request. Wait… is this going to be happening every month?" he asked curiously.

"Oh no nono. Just until I get some manpower which I am hopeful that I will get before the next month arrives." Poncho assured. "hm.. I must say.. Where is Chopper today?"

"Oh he's still asleep." Polton laughed.

"It's just us for the moment." Riolu smiled.

"Oh my my.. so that's why my visit isn't so noisy today." Poncho laughed. "Well I must go and prepare my shop. You can deliver the berries once you're done at my stall. You'll receive your payment there as well. Good luck! And I hope you regain your memories Riolu. May Arceus guide you."

"Thanks." Riolu said as they waved good bye at Poncho. He looked at Polton, "Should I wake up Chopper?" he asked

"No don't. Let's just do it ourselves." Polton answered, "I can already imagine him complaining about _working so early in the morning_ and _why we woke him up for some rat ass job_." He added.

Riolu laughed as he started carrying two baskets, "You two really knew each other for a long time, don't you?"

"Yeah… it's been just us for ten years now.. "Polton smiled sadly. "He was just nine and I was ten back then… yeah. We've been through a lot of shit.." he laughed, while his shadow started moving under him and formed into two tentacles and carried the two remaining baskets. "Well.. We have a job to do."

Riolu can't imagine what their life back was then before the two of them met. Did they have a family to care of them? He doesn't want to pry but he couldn't help himself. "Where was your family… I mean.. Before you two met each other.. Sorry I don't mean to pry.." he apologized as they started walking. Well _he_ started walking; Polton was just floating beside him.

"It's okay." Polton smiled. "Well…. Before we met I was with my clan. I've never really been fond of them. So I ran away. The things they do…. Well I can't say I'm proud of what my clan does.. so yeah.. After I ran away I met Chopper." He said looking down the ground with a serious face.

"_Kill him… kill him.." Polton heard his Banette father said as he stared at the weakened and injured pokemon in front of him, he tried to keep the knife beside him afloat. "Strike him so you can become stronger… Kill him… kill him and evolve.."_

_A Skitty stumbled near their clan territory last three days ago. Probably separated from its' mother. Now it's here in front of Polton, frightened and weakened from the torture it received. He couldn't kill it; he didn't know there was a rite like this in their clan. And for what? To evolve? No he won't do it; not to this poor pokemon. It was still young like him, probably even younger._

_He could hear everyone chanting 'kill him kill him' but he couldn't do it. He maybe a creature of darkness but that doesn't mean he should be one in actuality. He deserves to choose what he should be and that is not to be a murderer. He dropped the knife with a 'cling' sound and everyone went quiet. He gulped and looked back at his clan members and saw their eerie stares. Their eyes are glowing under the moonlight while the Skitty behind him was whimpering. _

_He was about to speak when his father quickly rushed behind him. Before he could turn his head he heard a small whimper then a sudden snapping sound. He couldn't turn knowing what he would see would terrify him for life. He just floated there as his father went in front of him and said, "Weakling…." then they slowly dispersed and went unto their homes. _

_He couldn't be a part of this. He just can't accept it. So the only thing that went to his mind was to get away. Fast. He hid in the shadows and used it to run away from his village not even sparing a glance at the dead pokemon. When he was sure that he was far from his village, he emerged from the shadows unsure of where to start looking for a place to stay._

_Polton traveled for a few days without sleep for fear that his clan was following him but soon he became exhausted and fell to the ground somewhere in a forest. It was noon and the few days he didn't sleep was taking its' toll. They may be insomniacs but they still get tired from a lack of rest and sleep. _

_He found a huge tree, enough to conceal his presence. Finding a comfortable spot, he closed his eyes and let sleep come to him. It was only for a few hours when he heard a voice. He was already high on alert and ready to fight when he thought the voice came from one of his clan members. He stayed quiet for a moment then he heard it. It was the sound of someone crying. He went down to inspect where it came from and saw a Machop sitting across the tree he was resting at. The pokemon was crying as Polton started approaching it._

"_Are you okay? What's wrong?" he asked the crying Machop but startling it in the process._

"_Wah!" The Machop stood. _

"_It's okay it's just me. Don't worry I won't hurt you." Polton assured. The machop was quiet for a moment and Polton decided to introduce himself, after all the machop appears to be young so it can't possibly hurt him. "What's your name? Mine's Polton. Polton Shuppet." He said to the machop. "What's yours?"_

"_I- I'm Chopper…Chopper the Machop" the machop sobbed._

"_Okay Chopper. How old are you?" Polton asked gently._

"_N-nine.." Chopper answered._

"_Hey you're just a year younger than me." Polton smiled. "Why were you crying? Are you lost?" he asked. Chopper answered by nodding his head. "Where are your parents…?" Polton gulped as he asked, trying to forget his own parents. _

_At first Chopper shook his head sideways which Polton thought that it meant 'he didn't know' but then Chopper spoke and said, "Gone.."_

"_Gone? Like you got separated?" Polton asked but Chopper shook his head again which signified 'no'. Polton swallowed as he thought of the other meaning of 'Gone'. "Alright… Alright…. Come on let's go find some cave.. It looks like it's going to rain.." he said looking up at the dark clouds forming. Chopper only nodded his head and followed Polton along the way._

"Chopper was sort of a crybaby back then." Polton laughed. "But he became strong. And at that point on we've been inseparable." He smiled.

"You guys sure had it rough.." Riolu said. "Now I feel like a jerk for delving into your past."

"Nah it's nothing actually. It's in the past." Polton laughed. "And as for my clan… well they're history actually. I visited my village a few years back with Chopper. I was hoping that maybe things have changed through the years… well in a way.. I guess it did." He paused. "The place was in ruins. Maybe because of the war. I was actually looking for the bones of the Skitty… We found it and… we also found a place for it." He smiled sadly. "We couldn't do the same for Chopper's parents though.. but we managed to make a memorial for them. So in a way.. It's kind of what we did to settle things with our pasts once and for all and move on.."

"That's good.." Riolu smiled.

"Well I'd asked for your turn in story telling but I remembered you lost your memories." Polton laughed. "Anyway we're near the forest.. that's where we found you, you know?"

"Really?.. " Riolu trailed off. He doesn't know if he still wants to remember his past. With all the things he heard today, he isn't confident that his clan didn't suffer the same as Polton and Chopper's clan.

"Do you want to go to the area where we found you? Or at least hit you with a flying wood." Polton laughed. "Maybe it could trigger some memories." He said hopeful.

"… alright" He took a long while to answer which made Polton look at him.

"Are you sure?..." Polton asked with concern.

"Yeah… I'm sure." Riolu answered.

They went to the area where Riolu woke up without his memory. It was an open area that is near the river. They stood there for a while waiting for something strange to happen.

"Are you getting anything?" Polton asked.

"No… I guess not." Riolu replied.

"Well at least we tried. Don't worry, we'll get them back." Polton convinced.

Without a word he nodded and headed deeper in the forest. The more they walked the more berries appeared in the trees they passed by. It was a lot actually and it wasn't as dark as other forest because the trees have enough distance to let sunlight in. There were a few pokemon roaming the area as they passed through the trees.

"Wow there sure is a lot of berries here." Riolu pointed out. "I wonder why Poncho didn't get berries here instead." He wondered.

"Well if you've tasted the berries he got from across the country, you'll know why. And those berries are way bigger than the ones found here." Polton said. "Okay, I think there are Pechas on your 9 o'clock. I'll go look for some Orans, I'll see you in an hour or two." He said and then turning in a different direction from Riolu.

"Alright I'll get some Pecha berries over there." Riolu said as he headed for the cluster of Pecha trees. Once he got near the trees, he can already tell the berries are going to be sweet, just from the looks of it. Now the problem is how he will get them from that height. He could climb up and shake the branches but it could bruise the berries when they fall.

He let out a heavy sigh, conceding defeat in just plucking them from the tree top and then carrying them into the basket one by one. _'This is going to take a lot of time.'_

He was about to jump up when he heard a gasp and the thud a basket with berries. He turned and saw a surprised Kirlia.

"Are you okay?" Riolu asked as he got near the Kirlia and started kneeling down to pick up the berries and then putting them back in her basket.

"Oh um y-yes Thank you.. I am fine.." She said as she too started to pick up some of her berries. "I'm sorry I was being… Clumsy." She apologized.

"Oh no it's okay.. You're not hurt are you?" he asked he placed the final berry in the basket.

"Oh no I'm fine.. Thank you." She smiled. She looked past him and noticed a pair of empty baskets near the Pecha tree. "Were you going to pick up some Pecha Berries?"

"Yeah I was just about to." Riolu replied. He noticed she had some kind of accent. It sounded kinda fancy but somehow it kind of fitted her.

"Would you like me to help? It would make your work easier and you can consider it as a 'Thank you' for helping pick up my berries." She smiled.

"Well .. If you're sure then .. Why not?" Riolu smiled.

"Glad to help." She smiled.

"Alright I guess I'll go up there and shake them down while you catch them with your Psychic before they hit the ground." Riolu instructed. "Wait.. You know the spell Psychic, right?"

"Oh unfortunately I can only do a Confusion spell.." She frowned. "This is weaker than Psychic so I can only lift a few of them."

"It's okay, it's enough." He assured her with a smile. "It's not that many anyway, just enough to fill the baskets should be enough." He smiled as they got near the Pecha tree. "Alright here I go." He stood in position, bent his knees and leapt unto the trunk and used it to propel himself again unto the nearest branch for him to hang on to.

"Be careful." The Kirlia shouted from below.

"I will." He said giving her a smirk as he hung from a branch. He looked up and pulled himself on top of the branch. "Ready? Here goes!" he shouted as he looked down, seeing the Kirlia nod, he then started to shake the branch with his foot. Soon six berries fell from the branch and the Kirlia used her mental powers to grab hold of the falling berries in mid-air. As she concentrated on levitating them, she then moved the berries into the basket slowly one by one.

"Great work. I'll head for the other branch." He smiled and leapt to the next branch and did the same. Five more berries fell and the kirlia caught them all and started placing them inside the basket slowly. He did a few leaping and shaking for a few times before he leapt again but this time he landed on the wrong footing. He heard a gasp from the Kirlia as he slipped from the branch. Luckily his swift reflexes saved him as he managed to grab hold of the branch before he fell.

"I told you to be careful." The kirlia frowned.

"Sorry." Riolu smiled apologetically and lifted himself up on the branch. "I guess a couple more branches would do." He said, hopping to next branch and shaking it. Once again kirlia caught all of it and Riolu proceeded to the final branch.

Once they were finished, Riolu dropped down from the tree and went to the kirlia. "Thanks for the help. And.. Sorry for scaring you back there." He smiled again apologetically as he scratched his head.

"It's okay. Glad to be of assistance; though please do be careful sometimes." She smiled sweetly. They both stood there for a while in an awkward silence as Riolu thought of something to say. She then broke the silence. "I feel so silly I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Titania Kirlia but you can call me Tania. It sounds better." She said as she held out her hand in front of Riolu.

"Tania. Well I guess you can just call me Riolu." He smiled. "I lost my memories so I guess you can just call me that." He reached for Tania's hand.

"Oh why is that? You sound like it's nothi-" Tania stopped midsentence when she grasped Riolu's hand. She gasped and took her hand away as if it burned her.

"What's wrong? Are you all right?" Riolu asked, surprised by Tania's sudden reaction. "Was there something in my paw?" he said as he looked at palm to check something out of ordinary.

"No- it's just.." Tania stammered. "I- I have to go. I forgot that there was something I must do." She grabbed her basket and walked away from the confused looking Riolu. She stopped and turned her head back at Riolu and smiled sadly at him. "I'm sorry… it was really nice meeting you Atl- …. Riolu." She then turned away and then glowing green lights and butterflies surrounded her until she glowed with it.

"Teleport.." She casted then she disappeared with a blink of green light.

Riolu didn't know what happened. First she was nice and everything then suddenly she started acted scared. He stood there the entire time trying to process what went wrong when he heard someone calling him. He looked around him and spotted Polton coming near him with two shadow tentacles holding the baskets full of Oran Berries.

"Hey are you finished? Where's the- Oh there they are. It seems you got plenty too." Polton smiled as he inspected Riolu's baskets. He realized Riolu wasn't listening to him. "Hey you okay?"

"Huh? Uh yeah. Yeah I'm okay." Riolu said as if he snapped out of a trance.

"You sure?" Polton isn't convinced but he didn't push it when Riolu gave him a nod. "Alright. Let's head back and give this to Poncho." Riolu merely nodded as he picked up his baskets.

* * *

The entire time Riolu was quiet but Polton didn't point it out. When they got in town they headed for Poncho's berry shop. The Berry Master was serving a customer when they arrived so they waited for a bit before going near him.

"Oh there you two are. Hmmm I see you've gathered plenty of berries. Thank you little ones. Thank you." Poncho cheered. "Here's the payment for your help." He handed them a pouch of poke-units. "That's 400 units for the work you did and a little bonus for Riolu's first Job." He smiled.

"Thanks Mr. Poncho and anytime you need help just call us." Polton thanked him as he took the money with his shadow.

"Oh no nono Thank you! Anyways I must go and tend to my customers. If you'll excuse me." Poncho said as the two waved goodbye at him.

Polton decided that since they got good money maybe eating out would do Riolu some good. He's been quiet for a while and Polton's itching to ask what happened. But since he knows how to be discreet, he won't pry. Maybe Riolu could even use the money to buy some things for his side of the house.

"Hey maybe we should eat out since we got a lot of money today." Polton suggested. "Come on, let's call Chopper, maybe he's awake by now." Riolu nodded with a smile and followed Polton all the way back into their house. When they got back, Chopper was already awake and doing pushups.

"503… 504….505.." Chopper counted but stopped when he noticed the two had arrived. He sat down on the floor and looked at the two. "Where were you two?" he asked irritably.

"Well I figured you wouldn't like it if we woke you up in the morning with a hangover to do a job." Polton replied. "Besides Riolu filled in for you."

"What? It's not like I'd go with you anyway but still you should've just woke me up." Chopper replied but paused for a moment before speaking. "Well… How much did ya guys get?"

"400 poke-units" Polton replied.

"Whoa that's a lot! Maybe this time I could buy tha-" Chopper stood up excitingly.

"No! We're gonna use this to eat outside and hopefully get Riolu to buy some things on his side of the house." Polton cut in.

"What?! But that's 400 units!" Chopper exclaimed. "Riolu you're with me, right?"

"Oh uh what? I uh-" Riolu stammered.

"No Riolu. You worked your ass off of this money so this belongs to you. Not to this _Lazy Bum_!" Polton retorted, glaring at Chopper. They were silent for a minute with the two having a glaring contest. Riolu was feeling a bit awkward when Chopper finally conceded defeat.

"ughhh Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine." Chopper dragged out.

"Good." Polton smirked. "Now let's go get something to eat. I'm dying of hunger."

"You're a ghost. Aren't you dead already?" Chopper snorted. "And I'm not a _Lazy Bum_. For your infooow-mation I did a 505 push up today. How's that for a _Lazy Bum_."

"Well for your _infooow-mation. _I'm a ghost pokemon, a pokemon that is capable of using spectral abilities, not the literal ghost." Polton said knowingly as they headed out of the house.

"yada yada yada. Let's go eat! I'm hungry!" Chopper cheered in which Polton rolled his eyes. "Say… you've been quiet for a while there Riolu? Something wrong?" Polton also looked at him curiously though he would have rolled his eyes at Chopper's lack of tact.

"Ah No no. Maybe I was just hungry too." Riolu smiled apologetically. He has got to stop thinking about what happened.

"See? Come on Pol. You talk too much." Chopper jested which made Riolu laugh.

"Pol? Was that a nickname or something? Because I don't like it. Stop it." Polton said with irritation. "And I'm right here beside you, idiot! You're the one that's talking too much." He said with a sigh.

"Come on, you two. Let's just go." Riolu smiled which made the two look at him.

"Alright." The two said in smiled and shared a laugh. Then they hit the road to find a good place to eat in town.

Riolu knows he should stop thinking about what happened a while ago but he can't help but wonder if that kirlia knows something; if Tania saw something because he's sure he saw something in Tania's aura. He thought for a while but soon stopped thinking. _'No… I'll just ask the two some other time about her.'_ He thought. Right now he should take things slow. But next time he sees her he'll need some answers.


	3. At Last I Have My Name

_A/N_

_Okay I've been busy with school lately so I haven't had the time to update. But here it is. Hope you have fun._

* * *

Chapter 3:

At Last I have my name

It was almost sundown when Tania decided to finish her duties to the town shrine, often called the Crescent Shrine. She gave the berries she gathered to the Chimechos, Chinglings and the Ninetales that watches over the shrine, helped in cleaning the garden and the inside of the giant shrine, and offered her prayers to the town's guardian.

The Crescent Shrine was built high above the town that overlooks it. From her spot she can view the town as well as the horizon of the setting sun. The entire afternoon, her mind was filled with Riolu so she couldn't focus much on her duties, which some of the Chimechos had often pointed out.

When she first saw Riolu she got a bit afraid. She thought her past was coming back to get her but when she felt no hostility coming from him, she tried to calm herself back then. Her clan's history with his kind is something she doesn't want to recall. Ever.

But she felt something different from this Riolu, especially the moment she held his hand. She saw images, memories and felt emotions; emotions that were so overwhelming she couldn't contain it so her only choice was to get away from him as fast as possible.

"My father was right all along…" she trailed off as she watched the sun set from the horizon. Her clan's teachings were the one that is wrong.

XXXX

The sky was turning dark as the trio headed home with full stomachs. They decided to eat at Weavile's meat shop where apparently, he can also cook them. Riolu admitted at first that he felt guilty for eating another pokemon's flesh but his kind needed protein and so does Chopper. The Weavile glossed over the details on how he got his supplies but rest assured he said it was _legal. _Whatever that means_._ Polton meanwhile merely ate salad which at some point annoyed the hell out of Chopper and then at which turned into an argument.

"Jeez… I think I ate too much.." Chopper groaned, rubbing his tummy as the walk.

"Well who told you to pig out?" Polton clipped.

"Hey when there's food offered, you just don't say no. Ain't I right Riolu?" Chopper smirked.

"Yeah. It was great." Riolu smiled.

"Well I hope you two are proud of yourselves, because that's just plain cannibalism there." Polton informed them. "And eating that much would make you fat you know. Who knows, you might even be the first to evolve into a fat Machoke! Ha! I would laugh until I die if that happened!"

"We knew that… it's just that-" Riolu trailed off.

"Meat is meat! That's that!" Chopper clipped. "Besides.. you're the weird one. Eating salad and all like it's _so_ great. For all we know it could be some grass pokemon Weavile picked up on the street." Irritation crept upon his face as the topic about his eating habit was brought up.

"Now that's just nonsense…. I'd know a grass pokemon from a real vegetable, thank you." Polton frowned. "Besides it was Riolu's money, you didn't have to buy the _whole_ store you know. I mean your plate is like a tower of meat or something." He grimaced.

"Well we didn't get to buy stuff for my side anyway.. So I guess the food made up for it." Riolu shrugged.

"Hah! What'd I tell ya?" Chopper barked a laugh as he patted the back of Riolu. Polton just rolled his eyes along the way.

It was dark when they got home, only the moonlight illuminating the dirt road. Polton summoned some will o' wisps to light the candles hanging beside the wall, lighting up the room. They all went to their beds but none of them seems to be interested in sleeping. Polton pulled a book from his desk and read it from his bed leaving the two to their selves.

Riolu thought now was the time to ask them about Tania, "Hey, do you guys know Tania? You know, the Kirlia."

"Lil Miss Tutu? Sure do." Chopper said. "She's cute, fancy but cute." He winked at him. "Why?... You like her?" he said giving Riolu a knowing smirk.

"Wh-what? I .. no- I just-" Riolu stuttered thinking of something to say with heat crawling behind his neck.

"Oh is that why you were so quiet a while ago? I bet you met her in the Crescent Forest, didn't you?" Polton cut in also wearing a grin.

"You too?!" Riolu asked incredulously at Polton who was now laughing.

"Ooooh don't tell me it was love at first sight?" Chopper laughed.

"What?! That's not- That's not wh-" Riolu stammered. "You guys!" he whined.

"Oh relax." Polton laughed. "We were just teasing." Riolu rolled his eyes and released a heavy sigh.

"So whaddaya want to know?" Chopper asked. "Of course if it's dating advice then…." He could tell Riolu was about to remark so he raised his hands in defeat. "Okay okay I'll stop." He grinned.

"Well we've talked to her a few times; she's always very nice and courteous. She helps out at the clinic sometimes but she always stays at the Crescent shrine." Polton shrugged. "You know, she suddenly just appeared here in the city six years ago like you did."

"Why? Where did she come from?" Riolu asked curiously.

"Well nobody knows, they said she was a spy.. but that was just when she first came here." Chopper replied. "Now though… I doubt it. She's been part of the town since then."

"What'd you wanna know about her anyway?" Polton asked.

"Well…. It feels like she knows something about me… I don't know I just can't shake the feeling." Riolu shrugged.

"Well it makes sense since she _is_ psychic." Chopper remarked.

"Or maybe you knew her in the past or something.. We could ask her. This could lead to something.." Polton suggested. "We could go there tomorrow first thing in the morning if you want." looking at Riolu.

"WHAT?! You said we're gonna train tomorrow." Chopper whined.

"Ugh you whine like a kid." Polton rolled his eyes. "We'll train _after_ we go to Tania for some answers. How's that?"

"Fine." Chopper mumbled as Riolu nodded.

"Thanks guys.. really." Riolu smiled.

"Is this gonna be one those moments when you cry and we cry or some crap like that?" Chopper groaned making Riolu and Polton laugh.

"No don't worry." Riolu said. "Nothing like that I promise."

Polton smiled and said, "Well we should tuck in so we can wake up early tomorr-"

"What?! It's only like… " Chopper paused, "It just turned evening!" he complained.

"Who cares? Sleep late or something for all I care." Polton drawled. "Me. I am going to sleep. Good night." He covered himself with a cocoon of shadows and turned the lights off on his side.

"Pft. Have it your way." Chopper scoffed. "Riolu and I will do just tha- What?! You're sleeping too!?" he exclaimed as if it was the end of the world when he saw Riolu started lying on his bed.

"Well… I'm rather tired. So I guess so." Riolu shrugged as he stifled a yawn. He lay down the haystack and stretched until he let his head rest on the bed as he closed his eyes.

"Fine. Fine you two win." Chopper grumbled. "Maybe I'll just go shower or something." He said standing up and going out..

XXXX

"HEY GUYS! GUYS! WAKE UP!" Chopper shouted.

"WHAT THE?! WHAT'S WRONG?! WHAT HAPPENED?!" Polton screamed, bolting up in the air.

"Ugh.. what's wrong…." Riolu grumbled as he looked at Chopper doing punches in the air. It seemed like this time Chopper's been the one who's up early.

"What's wrong? What's wrong? The sun is up but you're still not! That's… *huff*" Chopper paused as he did some punches to the air. "That's _what's wrong_."

"Psh.. Yesterday you slept all through afternoon." Polton scoffed.

"No that's different. I was drunk." Chopper said as a matter of fact. "Seems reasonable … enough." He said as this time he tried doing jumping jacks.

"What are you doing anyway?" Riolu said as he yawned, stretching out his arms.

"Warm up." Chopper simply said. "Don't you guys remember? We've got to train. For the festival."

"Yeah right. We talked about it yesterday, we're gonna confront Tania today, this morning." Polton snickered.

"Oh yeah I forgot." Riolu said. "Where does she live anyway?"

"Remember the town shrine? There's a dormitory near there. That's where she stays." Polton explained.

"Psh shrine people…" Chopper muttered. "How do you even know she's awake?"

"I'm sure she wakes up early. I think pokemons who stay in shrines have to wake up early because they have duties or something." Riolu replied. "I guess we better go if Chopper wants to train later. Or do you guys want to shower first?"

"Nah.. Let's just get this on with. I'll shower after training." Chopper commented.

The trio then went outside the house and proceeded on the way to the shrine. Everyone in town was just waking up. Others are already readying their stalls for the day. Riolu was still sleepy, often giving a yawn as he listened to the playful bantering of his two companions.

The trip through town went by with no incident. When they got to the stone stairway leading up to the shrine, he suddenly felt like going back home or maybe just go training with Chopper. The shrine it seems was ridiculously high. No wonder Tania could take it being up in the shrine. She could just teleport there if she wanted to.

"Are you sure she's staying in is up there?" Riolu groaned. "I mean look at that! That's like the _Stairway to Heaven_ or something."

"Oh yeah! This could serve as a warm up training!" Chopper cheered. "Come on, Let's go! Thought you wanted to meet _Tania _so badly_._" Chopper smirked, twinkling his eyes for effect as he said her name.

"No. I never said that." Riolu clipped setting a foot down on the first step of the staircase. The trio went up the stairs with mixed emotions. Riolu was bummed that he had to climb this stair, Chopper was completely psyched in climbing, he was even counting his steps, and Polton was completely indifferent as he can just float upwards.

What he would give to be able to float or levitate. Now that he thought of it, he was getting a bit nervous as they got close to the top. He hadn't thought this one through. He couldn't just go up there and demand information from her right? It's rude. _'Crap! Why hadn't I thought of that first?'_ he thought. What's he going to say to her? Maybe they should just go back. Time seemed to pass by as he didn't notice his companions stopped.

"Earth to Riolu! We're here." Polton said.

'_Crap'_, they're here already? Curse he's athletic legs. He hadn't even thought of what he's gonna say to her. He never even got tired when they climbed the stairway. What the hell?

'Oh.. uh maybe we should just go back, you know." Riolu blurted. "I don't think this is a goo-"

"Oh come on don't be a wimp!" Chopper jested as hooked an arm over Riolu's shoulder. "She's not gonna date you if you act like a-"

"I'm not here to ask her out!" Riolu snapped unhooking Chopper's arm of him. "And I'm no wimp either." He said dusting himself as if Chopper messed up his fur. "It's just that…"

"Just what?" Polton asked. "Listen. We're already here. Even if you're too shy to talk to her, now's the time to ask questions. This is your chance to know the truth."

Riolu let out a an exasperated breath and mumbled, "alright.." They then proceeded to go to the shrine.

It was really tall as if it could reach the heavens. It felt like a tower instead of a shrine. It stood high with a dark shade of red and beige with the sun's rays making the colors more vivid. The tower was surrounded by cherry blossoms making colors mixed in the place to become very warming for the eyes. Riolu could feel like there was no war going on when he's here. As they got nearer they were approached by a Chimecho.

"Good morning. Did you come here to pray?" The chimecho cheerfully said. "I can give you some incense."

"Uh no, thank you. We just came to see Tania. Titania Kirlia." Polton said. "But don't worry we'll be sure to give a prayer before we leave." He smiled.

"Oh okay. She's talking with overseer Ninetales at the moment. I'll tell her you're here when she's done. Are you her friends perhaps?" the chimecho said.

"Oh um acquaintances. We just needed to talk to her about something. We'll just wait here." Polton suggested.

The chimecho paused for a moment, perhaps weighing Polton's response before speaking cheerfully. "Okay, I'll be sure to tell her." And then he floated away going inside the shrine. They waited outside for a while until Chopper broke the silence.

"You think the little guy will believe you?" Chopper raised his hairless eyebrow at Polton.

"Well it's not like we were gonna do something to her. So I guess he would." Riolu cut in.

"Don't fuss over it. It's not like I said. _Hey is Tania there? Can we borrow her for interrogation or something? Don't worry we won't torture her._" Polton dramatically whispered. "And like Riolu said, we're not gonna do anything to her except to ask questions."

"Sounds almost the same to me." Chopper snorted.

"This is a questioning not an interrogation." Polton countered.

"Semantics." Chopper scoffed. "What's taking them so long anyway? It's almost noon and we still haven't trained yet."

"Shush up you two. I can hear footsteps coming." Riolu whispered to the two. Then a ninetales came out of the shrine's entrance with Tania and the chimecho in tow.

"Oh it is you." Tania said.

"Tania, that is not the way to greet your guests." The ninetales calmly said, making Tania mumble an apology. "Welcome my young friends."

"Forgive us … ma'am.. but may I speak with Tania in private." Riolu said.

"I see no problem in that. You should be asking her, not me little one." The nintales smiled. "I shall leave you alone."

"You should go too, guys." Riolu motioned for the two.

"You sure?" Polton asked in which Riolu nodded.

"Hey don't go doing something stupid. I'm not gonna raise little pups and ralts for ya." Chopper winked.

"Th- That's. Stop being so … ridiculous!" Riolu stammered, heat crawling at the back of his neck. He glanced at Tania who seemed to have heard Chopper's joke and was now blushing as well.

"We'll wait by the stairs." Polton said as they left the two alone.

They waited for a moment until everybody was out of hearing distance. They stood there quietly with an awkward tension until Tania broke the silence. "It seems you have some… questions."

"Yeah.." Riolu trailed off. "Listen. I know you saw something in my mind.. a memory perhaps.. I just.. I need to know what you saw."

Tania was quiet for a moment before she answered, "I'm not sure if I even I understand what I saw. It was just…. Fast moving images.."

"Are you sure?" Riolu said.

"Yes. I might not be able to help you. The images were too blurry to even comprehend. I just know I felt…. agony in your memories… I don't know if you'd want to see them anyway." Tania admitted.

"Nonetheless I still have to try, right?" Riolu insisted. "They're _my_ memories. _My _pain. _My _agony_. _Maybe _I_ can decipher them. Please." He pleaded.

Tania was quiet for a long moment. Riolu thought she was going to refuse until she spoke, "I… alright I will try.." Tania conceded. "You must… hold my hands.."

"Oh al- alright." Riolu coughed pausing near Tania and then grasping her hands. "What next?"

"We must close our eyes." Tania said as she closed her eyes. Riolu watched for a moment, not sure what will happen but then he finally closed his.

He waited for a while but nothing happened. He was beginning to question what the hell were they doing. He realized this is the second time he felt her hands. They were soft and gentle. He tightened his grasps a bit when he felt a sudden dizziness came over him.

"Please remain calm. It is happening." Tania reminded him. He was embarrassed for moment. He softened his hold on her hands and tried to calm himself. The dizziness was again coming back but this time he tried to welcome it.

XXXX

_He was playing with some fellow Riolus in the forest; running around, playing tag. Having fun at the moment when he heard the voice of his father calling him from the treetops. He didn't want to go home so early because his mom promised him he can go outside with his friends today. Mom has been in bed for a while but it's okay. She said she's just feeling a little under the weather at the moment, she said she'll be okay soon. Gathering his friends, they went after Riolu's father. _

"_Dad… Do we have to go home so early.." Riolu pouted at his father._

"_I'm afraid so, son." His father said. "Your mother… wants to say something to you."_

"_Awww can't she do that later tonight…" Riolu whined._

"_Son!..." His father snapped which surprised Riolu and silenced the group. "son… no .. no she can't.. come on.. Let's go" his father said calmly this time._

_They went home, leaping from tree branch to tree branch until they got home to their village. His father motioned for him to follow. Riolu went behind his dad as he noticed their neighbors looking at them with sadness and sympathy. He doesn't why are they looking at him like that. All of them are outside their houses looking at them as they walked near their own place._

"_Dad what's wrong? Why is everybody looking at us like that?" Riolu asked his father. His father only looked at him and smiled sadly and knelt down and hugged him. He can tell his father was trying not to cry so he hugged him back. Hoping to take away whatever made his brave father sad. His father then stood up and held his paw and they went to their house._

_It started raining then as they got near the house, mirroring the sadness in the eyes of his kind. When they entered the house, Riolu quickly went for his mom hoping to tell her if he can still go out and play later. His father followed him to his parent's bedroom._

_When Riolu entered the room, he saw his mom lying in his parent's bed with her eyes closed. His heart fell when he saw this._

"_Mom?..." Riolu croaked. She then slowly opened her eyes and smiled at him. He smiled back in return. He was anxious when he entered the room. Now everything's going to be ok. His mom's going to be alright._

"_My baby… come here…." His mother smiled. Riolu came closer and sat on her mother's bed side. He gave a glance at the doorway, seeing his father standing there. He lay down beside her as she wrapped her arms around him, cradling him while he rests his head on her shoulder. She started humming the lullaby she always sang when tucking him to bed._

_Riolu looked at his father coming near them and his eyes becoming teary. His father knelt down beside them and stroked his mother's cheek. Riolu then closed his eyes as he listened to her mother's lullaby and the sound of her breathing. _

"_I love you my baby… be strong for me and dad…. Okay?" she whispered and continued humming the lullaby._

"_Okay mom…" Riolu said while still closing his eyes. He listened to her mother's humming until she stopped. He thought she was sleepy but the rise and fall of her chest stopped too. He became confused when he saw his father bow down his head with tears dripping down the floor. _

"_Mom?" Riolu asked looking up. When she didn't respond he sat up and tried shaking her, "Mom..?" He became afraid when she wasn't waking up. "Come on Mom, wake up…" Tears soon filled his eyes as he thought of the inevitable. He started shaking her harder hoping she would wake up like awhile ago when he called out to her. "Mom…MOM!.." he sobbed._

"_Son.."His father said. "Your mother…. She's …. In a better place now.." placing a paw on Riolu's shoulder_

"_She's right here! What's better than being with us!" Riolu shouted shrugging his father's paw off of him. "Mom! Wake up!" shaking her as tears filled his face._

"_It's no use…. She's gone," His father sobbed._

"_NO!" Riolu jumped out of the bed and ran through the doorway._

"_ATLAS!" he heard his father shout. _

XXXX

Riolu let go of her hands and placed them on his temples as he felt himself kneeling into the ground. He closed his eyes and shut off everything around him. He heard murmurs from his friends but he couldn't understand them. He was sure that he was shouting. Tears were streaming down his face as he remembered his mother. His heart ached so badly. He opened his eyes and saw Tania doing the same. He saw her tears and she must have felt the pain too. He tried to calm himself and groggily tried to stand. His vision was blurry like he was still somehow asleep.

The mumbled voices he kept hearing are starting to clear. He closed his eyes again and tried to relax. He wiped the tears from his face as he opened his eyes.

"Yo dude are you okay?" Chopper worryingly asked. "What did she do to you? What the hell happened?"

"Chopper. Don't ask too many questions. He's shocked. We better wait for him to calm down." Polton advised.

Riolu ignored his friends and knelt down to help Tania up. "Are you… alright?" he asked her.

"I- I'm sorry." She apologized with tears coming down her face. "It was too much… I shouldn't have- shouldn't have tried to show too much."

"No I'm sorry. I'm sorry you had to experience that…" Riolu apologized.

"I- I have to go. I'm sorry." Tania sobbed as she tried to stand. She ran back away from the shrine and went to the dorms. Riolu just stood there not sure what to do while his friends watched him both unsure of what to do either.

"Are you in need of assistance?" The Ninetales asked.

"No ma'am… I uh.. We better go." Riolu quickly said and turned away as fast as he could, walking near the stairs like he wanted to get away from this place.

"Hey! Wait- What's- Damn what's gotten into him?" Chopper said scratching his head.

"We uh we better go check on him. If you'll excuse us, m'lady." Polton said bowing his head. "May the Maker Arceus guide you and the Guardian Crescelia protect you. "

"Perhaps that is for the best. And to you three as well." The Ninetales said politely as she bowed her head too and Polton quickly headed off unto Riolu's direction. Chopper bowed too and ran along following him.

XXXX

They spotted Riolu halfway down the stairs sitting on one of the steps. He had his elbows placed above his knees.

"Hey… Sorry for running off like that.." Riolu said without looking back. "I'll head home for a while… You two just train together without me." he stood up and walked down the stairs with the two right behind his back.

"Sure…" Polton replied. "All right, whatever makes you feel better." He said looking at Chopper.

"Hey buddy, want something to drink tonight? We can arrange this day into just _drink 'til drunk day_." Chopper offered gently.

"No I just… want to be alone." Riolu mumbled.

"Oh okay, buddy." Chopper said.

"If you need anything … you'll tell us right?" Polton said with worry. "I mean I know we may have just met each other for a few days but… you became one of us right then. So if you need anything… talk to us, alright? Don't try to do this all on your own."

"Yeah we may not seem like it but we're good psychiatrists. We've done things like that. Right, Pol?" Chopper jested.

"Again with that nickname." Polton rolled his eyes.

Riolu looked at them and managed a small smile, "All right… I will.."

"And it's…. It's Atlas." Riolu whispered.

"Atwhat?" Chopper asked.

"My name. Atlas." Riolu smiled. "I guess… I can finally introduce myself."

"Well… once again.. Welcome to the club, Atlas." Polton smiled. "No… Welcome to the family."

"AT LAST! HE HAS A NAME!" Chopper cheered dramatically earning a laugh from the two.


End file.
